In his sermon 'So Walk,' Pastor Rick Lentz emphasizes the importance of secure foundations for both individual Christians and the church community. He warns that the erosion of these foundations parallels the moral and spiritual decline in society. Citing Isaiah 59, Pastor Lentz highlights that when challenges arise, God raises a standard, a concept symbolized by the crucifixion of Christ, which paradoxically draws people to Him despite its gruesome nature. The sermon discusses the transformation of believers through sanctification, rooted in the Word of God, and encourages them to live sacrificial lives that testify to God's power. Pastor Lentz also differentiates between nominal Christianity, referred to as 'Christianity with a small C,' and genuine faith, 'Christianity with a capital C,' emphasizing the need for a true transformative experience. The sermon draws on scriptural references from Colossians and Ephesians, underscoring the necessity of being rooted and built up in Christ, and calls believers to walk in faith, embody wisdom, and abound in thanksgiving, ultimately representing Christ well in the world.

Wednesday Nights. This is basically our theme for probably, well at least the rest of this year, maybe into next year, depending on how it all goes. But when Jerry and I talked about what we wanted to accomplish on Wednesday nights and what we wanted to look at, there were a couple things that came to mind and this is one of them, that as a church, a local fellowship, as individual Christians, we need to be sure that our foundations are secure. And as we look around, we begin to see how the foundations of our nation are being eroded. And we talked about that the first night, when we talked about family, we talked about the church, we talked about the culture.

And so David asked the question, if the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do? We all should have figured out by now that when God asks us a question from his word, he gives us the answer, and it's in his word. And the answer is in Isaiah 59. It says, so shall they fear the name of the Lord from the West and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy comes in like a flood, the spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him.

I have personally never been in a flood. I've been in heavy rain storms, all that kind of business, but I've seen the destruction that a flood can do and it usually starts with foundations. And the devastation that that can cause with the whole structure is an important concept as a church and as believers, we need to begin to put into our hearts and lives that When the enemy comes in like a flood, God is trying to raise up and he's purposing. God said the Lord will raise up a standard. So God's gonna do this.

I guess our question before myself and all of us is, will I be a part of this? Will I be an active integral part of what God is trying to do in raising up a standard? Obviously it refers to John 12 verses 13. Jesus is saying this, if I am lifted up from the earth I will draw all peoples to myself. This he said signifying what death he would die.

So he's telling his disciples that when he is crucified, when he is lifted up as the sacrificial lamb to take away the sin of the world, that this will be the standard. A crucified Christ is lifted up and he's going to draw all men to him. Now that's a paradox because you and I know that this was the most gruesome, hideous, painful death possible. And to look on that in the physical sense would not be attractive. In the spiritual sense to look on that, it's the most attractive thing in the world.

Because this is the culmination of John 3.16, God so loved the world, he gave his only begotten Son. And this is the culmination of his son's ministry and his son's call and purpose, to be the lime of God that takes away the sin of the world, to be the sacrificial lamb shedding his blood for the forgiveness of sins. But it goes on in scripture to tell us this, in Galatians chapter 220, It said, I've been crucified with Christ. It's no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me and the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. So as we go through our Wednesday night's teaching, it has to get narrowed down to each and every one of our lives individually.

That it's the Christ that lives in me lifted up a transformed life, a sacrificial life, as we read this morning in our daily devotions, broken bread and spilled out wine, God's gift given to you and I to represent him in this culture that we live in. So as we began to look at this last week and how this is accomplished in my life and in your life, we obviously began to look from the point of sanctification, the will of God. This is the will of God, your sanctification. And we looked at how he's going to accomplish this in my life and in your life. It says they're gonna sanctify them by your truth, your word is truth.

And so we held up God's word given to us as his ways and means as the outline points out. This is how he's going to accomplish this work in my life and your life, through his word. It's not gonna be through good works, it's not going to be through what I think, it's not going to be what you think, it's going to be what God has explicitly told us in the Word of God. And as we look at this Word of God, as we surrender to the process of being sanctified, we become the testimony to the sin-sick world. There's nothing more dramatic than a changed life, nothing.

And I would venture to guess that all of us who perhaps got saved later in life, perhaps earlier whatever, but the transition and the transformation from the old to the new should be dramatic. I was not, I don't even know what, I don't want to say the words I'm thinking. I was not a good example in high school of being what an honorable young man was. I was cocky, I was arrogant, I was self-serving, selfish, and kind of a troublemaker. There was a young man who was a year behind me in high school and I can honestly say he was worse.

Okay so here's his name was Wayne I'll use his name he'll never hear it that's all right. Fast forward a while, I'm in Appleton at a David Wilkerson crusade. We took a bus from Wausau to Appleton, and Wayne is at this crusade. And he saw me and I saw him, and he said, Rick Lentz, what are you doing here? And I said, I gave my heart and life to Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior.

And he just went like this. If God can save Rick Lentz, he can save anybody. And I said, it's absolutely true. But there's a testimony, and this is our testimony. This is the standard people, the transformed life that God is trying to accomplish in you and I.

And as we look at the power of this transforming Word of God and apply it to our hearts and lives, it begins with our foundations. It begins with the things that you and I are building on, our faith walk, our testimony, what we live in. And we need clear direction. Talk about this a little bit on Sunday that the purpose of a light is to give us this kind of direction. So we're going to open up this morning or the second, what time is it this evening, to Colossians because in Colossians beginning in chapter 2 and going through the first six verses or seven we will begin to see what God is trying to accomplish in each and every one of our lives and as we walk through this together it's important that we keep our eyes on the function.

We want our foundations to be secure. We want our foundations to be built on God's word and the Lord Jesus Christ. And so we begin there with Galatians chapter two, beginning at verse one, and it reads this way, "'For I want you to know what a great conflict I have "'for you and those in Laodicea. "'For as many as have not seen my face in the flesh, that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love and attaining to all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the knowledge of the mystery of God, both of the Father and of Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Now this I say, lest anyone should deceive you with persuasive words, for though I am absent in the flesh, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ." Paul, anointed by the Holy Spirit, writing this letter to the church in Colossus and he's addressing the very things that you and I are looking at.

And he begins with these introductory words to say, you know, I'm concerned. What was the issue with the church in Laodicea? Well, in Revelations it tells us, and to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write, these things say the amen, the faithful and true witness, beginning of the creation of God. I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were cold or hot.

So then because you are lukewarm, neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of my mouth, because you say, I'm rich, have become wealthy, have need of nothing, and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked." That's quite a condemnation. But unfortunately it represents a picture today of not only our culture, but Christianity with a small C. Christianity with a small C. All right, and we need to make a distinction between Christianity, small C, people who claim to be Christians, and Christianity with a capital C, the Church, people who have been truly born again by the Spirit of God. I don't know the percentages, so I'll just give you a percentage, but probably 95% of the people would tell you they're Christian, at least in Green Bay.

The people who are truly born again by the Spirit of God is probably less than 10%. So we make that distinction. But unfortunately for our culture and unfortunately for what we're facing, the dilemma that we're facing is that when people say I'm a Christian, and we say I'm a Christian, they don't know the difference because they're not spiritual people. They can't tell the difference. So you say you're a Christian, I say I'm a Christian, I act this way, you act that way, you begin to understand the importance of the transformed, sanctified life, our testimony.

And I think it's especially true with American small-C Christianity with the prosperity. We've got and we support a Gospel Link ministry that's in Malawi. We support a number of other missionaries, obviously, but this one. And when I talked to Dean, who is head of the mission kind of thing, he's looking for pastors to go over to Malawi to talk. And he said to me, Rick, it's really hard because lots of people wanna go over there and speak, but they wanna bring the message of American Christianity.

They wanna bring the prosperity message to Malawi. I don't know if it's still the poorest country in Africa, but it's close. And that's not the Gospel. So for a man who's looking for pastors to go over to Africa to bring the gospel message and struggling to find people with the true gospel message, It's a problem that we need to face and address as to what's really going on. When we look at Colossians chapter two and go on in verse two, it says that their heart may be encouraged, being knit together in love and attaining to all riches of the assurance and understanding, to the knowledge of the mystery of God, both of the Father and of Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

And so as we look at that, Paul is saying to you, he's saying to me, he's saying to the church there, the church today, I'm writing this because I want your heart to be encouraged. You need to be knit together in love, attaining to the riches and full assurance of understanding, to the knowledge of the mystery of God. Well, what's the mystery of God? It's not a mystery. Colossians chapter one tells us this is the mystery of God.

To them will to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. That's a mystery to an unbelieving world. Why are you different? What makes you different? How come you're doing that?

How come you don't do this anymore? That's a mystery. The mystery is answered by one simple phrase, Christ in you, the hope of glory. And as we ponder that, And as we look at that, we begin to see and see Paul's heart, see the Lord's heart for us to be encouraged. There should be a Barnabas in each and every one of us.

It's a trick question that I've asked people before and I'm not going to ask for an answer today but apart from Jesus Christ, the question I posed was who is the most influential person in the New Testament? And obviously people say Paul automatically. But there wouldn't be a Paul without a Barnabas. And so my answer, and I'm not going to give you anything else but my answer tonight, my answer is Barnabas, because he was the encourager. He encouraged the church in Jerusalem, he encouraged Paul, he was the encourager.

And this is the Barnabas in each and every one of us to be an encourager, to be speaking words of edification and building one another up in the Lord. It goes on or it talks about in verse two about the riches and we know what the riches are compared to but in Proverbs 8 it says this wisdom is better than rubies and all the things made desire cannot be compared with her. Proverbs 16 1 it says wisdom is better than gold so we have the quote riches rubies and gold And it tells us that the wisdom and knowledge of Christ is more precious than that. Is that how we look at it? Is that how we grab a hold of what God is saying to us?

You know, wisdom is seeing life from God's perspective, not my perspective, not what the culture tells us. Wisdom is seeing it from God's perspective, and there's only one way we can see things from God's perspective, and that's through his Word. And it goes on in verses four and five in Colossians 2 just talk about the concerns of the influence of the world and it picks it up again As we look at it, it picks up again in verse 8, where it talks about be aware less than anyone cheats you through philosophy and others. We're not going to talk about that tonight. But it sets a stage for what we need to lay hold of.

And this is this faith walk, if you will. It says in Colossians chapter two verse six, as you have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him. Rooted and built up in him, established in the faith as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving. So here's the challenge, or here's the charge. As you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, as you have been born again by the Spirit of God, have you seen yourself as a sinner that needs a Savior and have repented and surrendered not just to Jesus Christ as your savior, but as your Lord.

As you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, it says walk in him. I put up the definition from the Greek in Strong's Concordance, just so we can see what this really means. I'm not gonna try to pronounce this. I used to try to pronounce the Greek and every Sunday when I try to pronounce the Greek, Soto would correct me. So I just decided I'm not going to pronounce the Greek anymore because I never did it right.

Soto was always right, you know, he's Greek. But here's what the word comes from in the original language and it's talking about to tread all around, that is to walk at large, especially as proof of ability. But figuratively, and God is speaking to us figuratively here, He says that as you have received Christ Jesus, live, deport yourself, follow. And so that's the definition of walking. It isn't going for a hike, it isn't doing some aerobic exercises, it's following, it's deporting ourselves, it's living a life that represents our relationship with Jesus Christ.

And scripture tells us we walk by faith, not by sight. We've defined faith and will continue to define faith as rightly responding to the word of God. God gives us his word. You and I are called by grace to respond. And as we rightly respond, we walk on, we follow the directions we're obeying as one might see.

Not as we can see it, but as we purpose to live it out. And it's influencing and it's affecting every area of each and every one of our lives, at least it should. It should affect how you relate in your family, it should affect how you relate in your work, it should affect how you relate communally with the voice of faith, Bible Church, it should affect how you relate with, you know, God's people throughout the community, by faith. Paul writes a little further on in Ephesians, I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called. People, I don't know, every time I come to this verse about walking worthy, walking worthy of the calling which you were called.

Think of the investment, think of the sacrifice, think of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light And we're asked to walk worthy. That's not only challenging and convicting, but it's humbling. Because he is asking you and I to represent him well as his ambassadors in this world. Walk worthy of the calling with all lowliness, gentleness, with long suffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body, one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all through all, and in you all." Practical, but Challenging.

How does this work? How do we begin our walk? How do we know that we're walking worthily? How do we know that we're pleasing God? Well, Colossians chapter two, we're going back, says this is how.

Rooted and built up in Him, established in the faith as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving. Rooted, built up in him, established in the faith as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving. We begin to examine our foundations to see if we're being rooted and built up in Him, the Lord, or are we being rooted and built up in something else. And that something else may be good, but it's not God. And there's a difference.

And as you and I are rooted, it's this picture, if you will, but it's also an action. Faith is always active. The deception of the enemy that he's put on the multitudes this day is that faith is passive. It's just something in my head, I believe that. I think it's true, yeah it's true.

But it doesn't, it's not active, it's not reaching out, it's not obeying, it's not responding. Faith is always active. And passive faith is a false faith. In Ephesians, it's amazing how God's word, Paul's letter to the Colossians, Paul's letter to the Ephesians, Peter's epistles, they all have this same message in it and we can find it. It's just simply this, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, that you being rooted and grounded in love may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge that you may be filled with the fullness of God." You see how these two passages just kind of go like this.

Paul is saying the same thing to both churches and that should confirm to you and I that he wants to say the same thing to us. Dwell in your hearts through faith that you being rooted and grounded in love may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height to know the love of God. You know about the parable in the sower. The sower went out and was sowing seeds and some fell on the path, some on stony ground, some on good ground. But the parable really isn't about the seed, is it?

It's about the hearts. It's about the ground. And as we purpose to be rooted and built up in him, God first of all needs to examine my heart and your heart. There's a phrase in the Old Testament that I should have put in here, I didn't tonight, but it's talking about plowing up the fallow ground. And God wants to do that.

God wants to do that in my life and in your life plowing up the fallow ground. I'm not a farmer, I don't claim to be a farmer, it shouldn't surprise anybody. But if you set the plow at the same depth over and over and over again, Pretty soon the bottom right there is a thing called the plow pan and it's really hard. And you have to set the plow lower than what you set it last year to dig up that plow pan. And so you and I find ourselves sometimes going through some of the same struggles and we say and we cry out to the Lord, I was just through this last year and he's saying Rick you need to go a little deeper.

I need this plow pan dug up and softened up so that your roots can go deeper. We all know the reality that the roots of a tree are most of the times larger than what you and I can see on top. I mean, it's just a picture, people. God wants my roots, your roots in him, deeper than the visual expression we give out, because this is his call and purpose on our hearts and lives. Hearts ready and willing to surrender, willing to receive, willing to be challenged and corrected.

And it only comes as you and I begin to give ourselves to knowing the truths of scripture and abiding in them, to study, to meditate, to apply, to begin to have these roots go deeper and deeper. That's really one of the reasons why last year we looked at the principles and precepts. We wanted to see, this is how you and I are to live. And it's a continued chain or continued story, continued application for each and every one of us. But to be established in the faith means that you and I would begin to understand basic doctrines.

You can read Hebrews 6 verse 1, it just begins to outline. And he's admonishing them and he's saying that, you know, by this time you should have known all of this, the basic doctrine. You don't. We need to. It's important.

It's important that we have this ingrained in us, that we can not only just have it in our heads, but able to begin to live and give expression of basic doctrine of Christianity. As we go on in our Wednesday nights we're going to look at the Apostles Creed, you know, I believe in God the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven. We're going to go through that piece by piece because this is just basic doctrine of the Christian faith. It isn't Catholic, it isn't Lutheran, it isn't Episcopalian, this is just basic Christianity 101. And as we look at it from that perspective, but just don't take it as the top.

I believe in God the Father, creator, you know, what does that mean? And how does that apply? And we're gonna dig deeper in this as we go through this on Wednesday night so that you and I can be well versed in these basic doctrines. As a part of Voice of Faith Bible Church, you need to know the principles and doctrines that we stand on. They're available.

Jerry has taught on them. I've taught on them. We'll probably teach on them again. But it's important we understand and agree and acknowledge. This is what the leadership is teaching, and this is how you and I are called to follow.

It told us in Colossians 2, verse 7, as you have been taught, and that's our responsibility. As pastors, that's our call. It tells us that in Ephesians 4.11. It says, he that's talking about Jesus Christ, it prefaces this word by saying, he who descended is now ascended. It's talking about Christ being raised from the dead.

He himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, and this is what they're to be doing. For the equipping of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect or mature man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. Have you heard anybody say that you and I to be partakers of His divine nature? Is that ever coming? Yeah, I hope somebody's heard that because we've said it over and over and over again and we'll say it more, but this is what it's saying.

This is our job and Jerry and I take this very seriously. We desire to equip the saints for the ministry. Sometimes the saints don't want to be equipped. That's not our job. That's the Holy Spirit's job.

But we have a function from God's perspective to equip the saints for the work of the ministry. Now, we're willing and we're wanting to be part of the ministry, but please people, don't ever, Don't ever mistake us for the ministers. I'm not the minister. Jerry isn't the minister either. We are the ministers.

That's just another word for servant. And each and every one of us here needs to begin to accept our responsibility to be equipped. Be like the Bereans. Search, study, Read Hebrews 13 to see how you relate to us. Then it says abounding with thanksgiving.

That Greek word talks about super abound. I don't know how you super abound. I haven't figured that out yet. Maybe somebody here figured out how you sue. But abounding just means that our hearts and lives are full of thanksgiving.

We're told that in 1 Thessalonians. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Abounding. I think that's what super abounding really means is that we can come to the place that in everything, people in everything, we can give thanks.

I struggled that when Rick died. I struggled seeing how in the death of our oldest son, I was called to give thanks. But I was. We are. And God works in a heart to bring us to that point.

I struggled when I was fired from two jobs. That was a little more practical. But It's circumstances in life situations that cause us to either respond by grace through faith as you have received Christ Jesus, so walk, or allow us to become bitter and become enclosed and ingrained and self-serving. God says, rejoice always. I think the psalmist says it best.

He said, I will praise you, O Lord, among the peoples. I will sing to you among the nations, for your mercy reaches unto the heavens, your truth unto the clouds. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens. Let your glory be above all the earth. God exalted, lifted up, because of his people are abounding in thanksgiving.

That's our call. But I want you to be challenged tonight, people, as you have received Christ Jesus, your Lord. So walk. ["Soul Walk"]